Human beings have implemented purposeful diets, exercise, medical regimens and other activities and routines (“personal activities”) for centuries, in an effort to restore, maintain or enhance personal health and physical performance.
In recent years, research has confirmed that the degree, frequency and type of personal activities can have profound affects on a person's overall morbidity and mortality. See, e.g., Brown, W. J et al., Updating the Evidence on Physical Activity and Health in Women, Am. J. Prev. Med. 33(5): 404-11 (2007). For example, it has long been understood that sedentary lifestyles are strongly associated with adverse health conditions and the risk of premature death. Matthews C E et al., Amount of Time Spent in Sedentary Behaviors and Cause-Specific Mortality in U.S. Adults, Am. J. Clin. Nutr.; 95(2): 437-45, Jan. 4, 2012. Flowing from this, millions of Americans now attempt to follow the advice of health professionals that they should make an effort to exercise frequently. When provided, a physician's specific advice may vary widely, but guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control recommend: (1) a minimum of 150 minutes of moderate-intensity or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity, and (2) muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week that work all major muscle groups, among other possible regimen combinations for health benefits. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, How Much Physical Activity do Adults Need?, available at cdc.gov, accessed Jan. 21, 2013.
Strikingly, a majority of patients are still not advised to exercise at all by their physician, even in the face of recent studies establishing that a majority of adults in the United States are overweight or obese. Patricia M. Barnes, et al., Trends in Adults Receiving a Recommendation for Exercise or Other Physical Activity From a Physician or Other Health Professional, NCHS Data Brief, No. 86 (February 2012); National Center for Health Statistics, Health, United States, 2011, at 15 and FIG. 11 (Hyattsville, Md., 2012).
In recent years, the sufficiency and soundness of general advice on exercise from health authorities has been called into question by empirical research. Several studies now demonstrate that even a high level of regular, moderate-to-vigorous exercise may be insufficient to offset the destructive effects of time spent sitting. See, e.g., Matthews C E et al., supra; see also J Lennert Veerman et al., Television Viewing Time and Reduced Life Expectancy: A Life Table Analysis, Br. J. Sports Med. 46: 927-930 (2011). Findings like these are extremely important today, because more and more workers in the United States spend most of their time sitting at work—specifically, while working at personal computer terminals. Many of these workers continue to labor under the delusion that, if they spend a half an hour at the gym on a lunch break or after work, they can offset the effects of a sedentary work routine. In fact, some studies may even support the disturbing conclusion that a person may actually be less active, overall, on days that they make an effort to exercise vigorously, offsetting the benefits.
Adherence to medical regimens and compliance with consumption-related instructions from medical and fitness personnel also presents long-standing, serious challenges for millions. In recent years, a plethora of medical compliance tools (such as reminder systems and calendared medicine containers) have flourished, but the issue of compliance with such regimens continues.
It should be understood that the disclosures in this application related to the background of the invention, in, but not limited to this section titled “Background,” do not necessarily set forth prior art or other known aspects exclusively, and may instead include art that was invented concurrently or after the present invention and conception, and details of the inventor's own discoveries and work and work results.